UEFA Cup (R)

I think Mancini needs to start taking this competition more seriously from now on and stop using the reserves and fielda full strength team and if we havea comfortable victory in the 1st round use the reserves in the second.

 

3-3 final result! We must win in Poland in order to move on! I think a 1-0 should do it...

 

What does eSeS in your favorite team field stand for? Just curious ....

 

EsEs is the nickname for Esteghlal FC of Tehran, Iran.

Just a quick look at the club: They have the most won games in all the history of Asian Club Championship, They have the best goal differential in the Asian Club Championship, Have won the ACC 2 times and became 2nd place 2 times aswell (this is a record which has yet to be beaten), Also they have probably the most Semi-final Appearances in all of ACC history.

I hope i answered your question instead of boasting it...

 

Lazio shouldnt have rested so many of their stars like Stankovic, Lopez, and Stam. If those 3 where in the starting lineup this would have been a win for sure. Now they will have to work harder for a win away from home, but im sure it can be done.

 

Stankovic and Lopez came in anyway, and little good it did for Lazio. Stam was still nursing an injury. Wisla is a very good club this year, and Kasperczak is an incredible coach, with a long, long history of turning underdogs into winners and Wisla would have gotten an advantageous result even with the stars playing for Lazio. Lazio and its fans simply did not realize the potential that Wisla has, or perhaps their mistake was ignoring the UEFA competition and treating it more like a warm-up in light of the league play. Whatever it was, Kasperczak, I can assure you, will not play for a tie in Krakow, and will try to make the home game into a showpiece and a statement.

 

Cool

 

This has the potential of being a classic, especially for Wisla. No Stankovic and Peruzzi for Lazio, but with Stam...and perhaps no Zurawski for Wisla, but his participation is still up in the air. There are only two things that can turn this game into a nightmare for both teams: the weather (some estimates claim temperatures to be as low as minus 10deg. C at kickoff) and the condition of the pitch. The field was covered with snow for the last 3 months, and only yesterday were the crews working on it. Contrary to logic, cold weather and poor pitch does not really favor Wisla, and may give this game an unpredicable quality. Wisla has been preparing for Lazio in France and Cyprus, and only arrived in Krakow today, one hour prior to Lazio's arrival, so familiarity with the cold and the messed up field will not be a factor. Fan support will be however crucial for Wisla.

Poor Mancini, complaining about the pitch at Lazio: his jaw is really going to drop once he sees what he has to face in Krakow!

As for the game itself, well, 'casue of the crazy pitch conditions control and posession will be very important for both teams, and obviously Lazio has an advantage there, at least on paper. Defensive work will also be key, and even though Wisla let in 3 goals in Rome, I think that their defensive unit is more organized and disciplined than Lazio's. Many fans unfamiliar with Wisla don't realize that Glowacki is now the mainstay of the Poland NT, and is a fearless type of a defender, and Baszczyski is almost as good. It's a solid defense, capable of defending Lazio's attack.

 

Let's hope no knives are thrown onto the field like when Parma visited a few years ago. Dino Baggio is going to be looking over his shoulder the whole game.

 

That jerk who threw the knife at Dino is still in prison, and Wisla knows very well that they can't afford another suspension from European competition. The last suspension cost them a lot, both financially and image-wise and only now they're slowly getting back up from the forced inactivity. In fact, some a..hole "fans" had a banner at the last Parma game, "greeting" their prisoner buddy, and Wisla now says that even such a display will not be tolerated. Let's hope for good behavior both on and off the pitch.

 

Good post. Perhaps Italian clubs could learn a lesson from the measures that you say have been taken. These days, fan trouble in Italy is getting worse and worse - I'm afraid it's going to take something serious (hopefully, nothing like Heysel and the resulting crackdown in England) to get them to take a serious look at the problem. Right now, there is a lot of talk and wringing of hands, but not much being done.

 

Wisla Krakow (3) v Lazio (3) Uefa cup 4th Round 2nd Leg.

Tonight we are away in Poland to Play Wisla Krakow in this must win match. We found out at the olimpico that these guys will not be pushovers but now Mancio has decided to play practicaly the strongest team that is available.

Here is the predicted team sheet and conformation will come later.

Wisla Krakow
Hugues
Baszczynski - Glowacki - Jop - Stolarczyk
Cantoro - Kosowski - Uche - Strak
Kuzba - Zurawski.

Lazio:
Marchegiani -
Stam - Negro - Couto - Pancaro
Lazetic - Simeone - Giannichedda - Fiore
Lopez - Chiesa

 

Hasn't their pitch been coverd in snow for somthing like 3 month now?

A 5 yearold could tell you that the pitch would be frozen underneath.

Best to get back to Italy and start training for the weeekend trip to Perugia.

 

Bummer. Now my PVR will be recording 3 hours of god-knows-what. Hey, maybe they'll reshow last week's game. That'd be worth watching at 4x speed.

 

Team news kicking off now i think.

Wisla
(4-4-2)
Hugues
Baszczynski - Glowacki - Jop -Stolarczyk
Uche - Strak - Cantoro - Kosowski
Kuzba - Wurawski

Lazio
(4-4-2):
Marchegiani
Stam - Negro - Couto - Favalli
Fiore - Stankovic - Simeone - Cesar
Chiesa - Lopez

nice to see a practicaly full strength team in this competition atlast.

 

finishes that way lazio are through.